Helping Hands
by RLoli
Summary: After coming to blows with the Remnants, Cloud finds himself in the company of the two he thought to be long gone; the two who helped him in the past, and want to help him into his future-and to Tifa. Set within AC-will become Post AC. Cloti, Zerith.
1. Hello Again

Anyways, so this is my second published piece and yet another pro-Cloti story. Clearly, I'm a Cloti shipper, haha. This is set towards the end of AC where Cloud is floating in all his awesomeness, just because he's awesome. Oh, and because he almost died, but ya know. Lots of Zack and Aeris, too. There should have been more Zack and Aeris in AC, even after ACC. MORE, MORE I SAY!

Feedback would be greatly appreciated-after all, constructive criticism will help me as a writer and if you're enjoying what I write, I would love to know! It makes me feel good when others enjoy what I do.

**I own nothing**. Not even the Cloud plushie I so desperately want.

In the meantime, I give you:

**-Helping Hands-**

"Mother?"

Whisper thin fingers gently applied pressure to his forehead, a caress hardly there, yet, wholly felt by Cloud Strife all the same. His mother would always touch him this way when she feared her son was ill. Her soft palm would come to a rest along his brow line and both mother and son found comfort in the gesture.

But this_ couldn't_ be right.

His mother was dead.

Three silver haired men-_no, they were almost still boys_-and then...

_Sephiroth._

Sephiroth had returned._ Jenova's head and the three silver haired brothers. Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz_. Loz had hurt Tifa-_thought Tifa was dead-the kids-gone. Bahumut Sin. Edge in peril-so much destruction-again._ And then...

Then Kadaj _was_ Sephiroth, but once again, Cloud was able to defeat the one-winged angel, or at least, the form that Jenova had presented to him. _He was able to overcome the nightmare._ Again. But...Loz and Yazoo... _He had turned his back-thought it was over._ There was a gunshot...He had fought back with primal determination-_ Lights, a horrific bang... and then- nothing._

Cloud was vaguely aware of being semi-present-he felt warmth and light, but there was no air, and no movement but his own shallow breathing and the delicate hand which withdrew from his face.

Was he dead?

No-_he had filled this same space before_. _She_ was here with him.

"Again? Why does everyone keep calling me their mother lately?"

Her sweet, ethereal voice was laced with quiet amusement and filled the space around him. He strived to hold onto his consciousness which was the only thing holding her presence to him. But he couldn't open his eyes, couldn't see her.

He wasn't sure if he could handle seeing her and, more than anything, he was afraid she would disappear.

"I guess they must be fond of you."

Right then and there, if only for just a moment, Cloud hoped he was dead. If he became one with the Lifestream, he would be joining them. Zack's voice pulled Cloud out of himself as he became more aware of his body; his body which seemed to be floating, as if it were in limbo.

"This one's a little too big to adopt."

Hearing their banter left him with such longing, but even as he began to contemplate death, something in his consciousness shifted, as if he were present in two places at once and it was this space where his consciousness didn't, nor the rest of him, belong. His entity was in conflict with itself; his mind had found a certain comfort in their presence of nothing, yet, his mind also seemed to be leaving him, as if it was pulling him back to what was an actual reality. All throughout his body he felt a tingling, as if it was uncomfortable and unable to adjust to the nothingness he was presently occupying. Still he kept his eyes shut. He didn't want to know where he was-didn't want to risk losing them before his eyes again.

"Tough luck, friend. Looks like you don't have a place here."

Even as Zack's words reached his ears, Cloud felt a tug. He could hear hushed voices but couldn't discern anything; they were too muffled, as if they were in the next room. His eyes seemed to be glued shut as he felt himself being lifted, but as his mind became pleasurably blank, he felt his body come to an abrupt and jerky stop.

"Cloud?"


	2. Greetings and Explanations

A hand. Only, this time, it didn't come to a rest on his forehead but gripped his left bicep, precisely where the ugly markings of Geostigma had been not long before. He found that he was standing upright and his eyes flew open involuntarily in response to the hauntingly familiar grip.

Brilliant emerald eyes through chestnut brown bangs, looked out from a flawless creamy visage. Aeris Gainsborough pulled Cloud into a tight embrace, and he stood stock still before the truth of the situation hit him. He pulled her into him as he choked back a sob, burying his head in the crook of her neck and melting into her motherly embrace. He looked up again and into the never-ending light as somebody cleared their throat behind her.

"So, it turns out we need to have a few words with you before you go back. But first-I'd like a piece of that, Spikey."

Cloud's knees buckled a little as Aeris pulled away and the older man stepped towards the blonde. Cloud looked into the face of Zack Fair; into his violet eyes, into the face that was unchanged by death.

"Don't just stand there, come here!"

Once again, Cloud was pulled into his friend's arms as they embraced like brothers. The two men gripped each other for what seemed like an eternity, yet neither of them found it necessary to move. Aeris giggled softly as they pulled away and Zack ruffled the blonde's chocobo-like spikes affectionately. Cloud could have sworn he saw tears well up in sad eyes, before they were swept away by Zack's trademark grin.

"Now, onto business. What's this we hear about you running away from Tifa and co?"

Cloud flushed, ashamed. _Tifa._ Was she waiting for him? And what about Denzel and Marlene and the rest of the gang?

"Zack! Don't be mean," Aeris scolded him, like an owner and their puppy. The puppy in question pouted in true Zack form, before breaking out into a wicked smile once again.

"I'm joking. We understand, why. We just want to make sure _you _understand why," his smile became slightly sympathetic.

Cloud looked onto his friends confusedly. The last few moments had been wrought with so much confusion; what he had believed to be reality and fantasy had become a blur, the thin line between them seemed to become redundant, and he still wasn't sure where he stood now.

"I-"

"It's okay, Cloud," Aeris smiled kindly and she brushed back the golden hair which had been hanging in his eyes. Cloud blushed; it was funny how she still had that affect on him, even years after her untimely death. He thought he noticed Zack's eyes flash with an almost indistinguishable look of jealousy, but it was there and gone before his violet eyes softened at the scene before him.

"Aeris," Cloud breathed, losing himself a little in her kind eyes, "I'm-do you really forgive me?"

"C'mon, Cloud. Don't this to yourself anymore," Zack said, his smile fading slightly, his tone a little harder than usual, "There's nothing to forgive."

Cloud remembered himself and looked to Zack, who had stepped forward and wound his arm around Aeris' slender shoulders. He suddenly felt inappropriate.

He had loved Aeris, but he had never been completely sure of what those feelings of love entailed. Had he been _in love_ with her? Seeing her now evoked strong feelings of affection, but seeing the way Zack looked at her stirred something within him. Before he reclaimed most of his memories, he had looked at Aeris the same way. He had known that because Barret had commented during his days in AVALANCHE and the big, gun-toting man had seemed annoyed by the observation, yet, Cloud had never understood why.

And then they had lost their sweet, flower girl. Not long after, he had fallen to the Lifestream where he reclaimed what he had lost to Hojo, and mako and _Sephiroth. _With the help of Tifa, he returned as Cloud-Cloud Strife of Nebelheim who had never made SOLDIER, the Cloud Strife who had not taken on his best friend's personality, or his feelings for a certain flower girl. Yes, he had been drawn to Aeris, but the way Zack looked at her, and the way Cloud looked at her seemed _different _now.

He had only looked at one other that way, and it had _never _changed.

"Zack-" Cloud began, however, said man held up a hand to silence him.

"Don't think on it, buddy," he said, smiling slightly, "I left a lot of weight on your shoulders, not to mention that giant chunk of metal," he joked, referring to Angeal's Buster Sword. He turned a grin to Aeris who rolled her eyes and then back to Cloud who chuckled slightly. Zack smiled widely at the laughter before he suddenly became serious.

"However, I didn't anticipate the horrible things that would happen to you," he closed his eyes, a pained expression disfiguring his usually happy featured face, "Nor how huge a burden I had left you. After trying to protect you all that time, it was almost for nothing," he said softly before becoming silent and looking away from Cloud. Aeris looked from both man to the other sympathetically while she wound her own arm around the raven-haired man's waist. After a short while, and a reassuring squeeze from the pink clad lady at his side, Zack continued, "Leaving you my legacy wasn't supposed to break you," and this time, tears did escape from the SOLDIER's eyes as he looked to Cloud with sorrow and regret, "I'm so sorry, Cloud."

The blonde warrior couldn't believe what he was hearing; Zack was apologising to _him?_

_"_There's nothing to be sorry about," he said simply-defiantly-echoing Zack's own words. The man in question considered him for a moment, before he gave him a watery smile and jumped forward almost tackling him.

"I am so proud of you, man!" he exclaimed, trapping Cloud in a suffocating bear-hug who found that he was tearing up himself.

"We both are," Aeris added, her smile radiating with such strength it made Cloud shed another tear or two, "Zack, I think you're squeezing him too tight. Put him down," she laughed.

"Sorry, Spike," he said, stepping away and beaming, "But it's long overdue."

Cloud nodded in agreement, smiling a small but wholesome smile.

The threesome stood before each other; Zack and Aeris beaming at Cloud, and Cloud, in turn, reveling in the miracle of their presence.

"I didn't want to hurt them anymore," Cloud said after a little while, answering Zack's earlier prompt.

"But did you_ really want _to leave?"

Cloud considered Zack's question. No, of course he didn't _want_ to leave. He didn't want to leave Denzel-the kid had just settled into their home, but Cloud had been so determined to find a cure for Geostigma in order to guarantee the orphan a chance at life. But then, even after he had given up on a cure, he continued to run; from everything, from their family. T_heir family-Tifa's and his family? _

His thoughts strayed to his best friend. His-_no, she didn't belong to him._

He had hurt her. He didn't want to hurt them anymore, yet he had hurt her even more in the process of trying to spare her. He sighed.

"Cloud," Aeris started tentatively, "You didn't want to leave, but you thought you were doing them a favour. But what about you? What about your wants?"

"My-wants?"

"Look Chocobo Head," Aeris shot Zack a look of warning before she giggled, and he winked back at her in response, "We understand that you thought what you were doing was right, and maybe it was, but maybe it wasn't."

"But the thing is," Aeris continued, "That's all irrelevant now."

Cloud's eyebrows furrowed as he listened to his two friends; so, they weren't condemning his actions? And they actually believed it was irrelevant?

"What Aeris means," Zack smirked slightly at the dumfounded look on the blonde's face, "Is that Tifa had a point when she had a go at you."

_Tifa. _She had always been true to her name and kept all her thoughts and feelings locked up, but she had finally had enough and let him know what he had probably should have already known. He w_as _running, but it wasn't _from _her. He would never run from _her. _

"Yeah, she was right. About everything. She always is," Cloud said quietly. Zack looked slightly amused for reasons unknown and Aeris was still smiling softly at him, "I just hope she hasn't given up on me."

"Oh, Cloud," Aeris sighed, which caused Zack to burst out laughing.

"Oh, man. You're so clueless it's adorable," Zack choked out, unable to stifle his laughter. He reached forward and ruffled the blonde spikes again, but Cloud stepped back fixing Zack with a slightly annoyed expression. Zack smiled apologetically.

"It's just that, well, you _do _know how Tifa feels about you, right?"

Cloud suddenly felt very child-like before the amused gazes of his friends, especially the suggestive way in which Zack had raised his eyebrows. And, in an equally childish gesture, he turned very pink and looked down at his heavy boots. That caused Aeris to giggle fondly.

"She's my best friend. She-she doesn't love me like _that," _he almost stammered, feeling very much like a teenager.

"I know you saved the world and all-_twice_-but you're a little thick sometimes, Cloudy boy," Zack said without malice, "C'mon, think, Cloud, think!" he smiled encouragingly. He looked at Aeris who was smiling, her head tilted to the side in her thinking pose, as if she were contemplating his answer.

"You love her, don't you Cloud?" she asked.

Of course, he loved Tifa. He had _always _loved her. But between Mako poisoning and Jenova and defeating Sephiroth and saving the world, there had never been much time for him to get his feelings in order, let alone a_cting _on them. Heck, he hadn't even had the time to feel much of _anything_ but grief and regret.

His thought process caused him to again think about his feelings, or rather, his almost false feelings for Aeris. At a time during their adventures with AVALANCHE he had thought he had noticed some sort of unspoken agreement between the two women brought on by mutual feelings within the two. Had they both _loved _him?

He had a hard time believing _anyone_ could love him, let alone _two_ women. Especially, two very special women. Had he loved them both at a time? Had it looked that way?

He recalled moments after Aeris' death when he would bring up the flower girl, when he would almost call on her for strength, when he had been so overcome with grief and guilt and her name had been his solace. He felt the exact same way about Zack, but it was mentions of Aeris which seemed to affect his oldest friend more. Within each of these moments he could also recall Tifa, her ruby eyes becoming almost dull, which he now suspected had not only to do with her own sorrow over her friend's death, but wariness, frustration- and _heartbreak. _

And Tifa, being Tifa, would never ever say a bad thing against her friend. No, she kept all of her feelings in, no matter how much it killed her.

Cloud Strife felt, once again, like a fool.


	3. Baring It All

Cloud felt so elated, yet there was a certain dread that was coming to the forefront of his mind. Standing before his friends-who were supposed to be long gone-filled him with joy, yet, he knew it was so to be short-lived. It was truly a bittersweet reunion.

And the current subject was making him feel more and more foolish by the second.

'_You love her, don't you Cloud?' _He had yet to answer.

"Look, buddy, we're not going to tell you what to do, or even tell you what we think you should do, because I think you already know. We just want to give you a... little helping hand."

"We're here to remind you that while you may now have all the time in the world," Aeris continued, "You have to start using it," she smiled lightly and a little ironically, "And be sure you don't lose yourself in the past again." she added defiantly.

"What did you mean by my actions being irrelevant now?" Cloud asked, his brows knitting together thoughtfully, "I mean, I can't just expect Tifa to forgive me for what I did. I abandoned them," he said heavily.

"She will forgive you, because she understands you-more than anyone," Aeris told him kindly, "She always has. Neither of us," and she gestured to Zack who was looking thoughtful, "Are going to deny that you hurt her, but it's irrelevant because Tifa has always been about moving forward."

"Dilly dally, shilly shally," Zack added, startling both Cloud and, especially, Aeris.

"The thing that has held you back, Cloud, is that you don't live for the present, or move towards the future, because you feel like you have an obligation to the past," Aeris said not unkindly, however she was looking as serious as Cloud could recall, "You don't have to keep living for us, Cloud, because we will always live within _you_," she finished a little sadly, but fixed a smile on her face.

"Let go of the guilt, man," Zack said, putting his arm around Aeris again, "And start living for yourself."

Cloud stayed silent, absorbing all his friends were telling him and imprinting their words in his mind.

"I ran because I believed I didn't deserve happiness," Cloud began shakily, "I thought, 'how could I live happily, when I let you both die?' It was so wrong," he closed his eyes as he strained to keep his emotions under wraps, "And then I saw how much my unhappiness hurt Tifa, but I didn't know how to fix it, and I thought she would be better off if I just disappeared. If I made her despise me and I just went off to die alone, I thought that it would be easier for her to forget me. And, at the same time, I didn't want her, for anyone, to watch me die, because I knew just how much that would destroy a part of themselves,"

"And then I ran to your church, and I stayed there," Cloud addressed Aeris, avoiding her eyes, "To Tifa, it had probably looked like I ran there for solace, that I was choosing you in a way," Aeris looked sadly at her friend at that, "But really, I was punishing myself. Because being in that place, being in a place so closely associated to you, to both of you, reminded me of all my failures-of two of my greatest failures," Cloud was sobbing now, and he was afraid that if his friend's touched him now, he wouldn't be able to keep his emotions in check. Yet, he felt himself becoming lighter which each word of truth he had kept to himself for so long.

"I was drowning myself in my own sorrows, my failures and my weaknesses," he said quietly. Neither friend interrupted him. "I didn't even realize how far gone I was, it had just become logical for me to be alone and to punish myself; nothing else made sense if I had let you two die," at that Aeris failed to repress a sob, and Zack held her tighter looking much too somber for someone of his character. And as much as Cloud hated himself for bringing grief to the two people before him, he knew it was the time to speak.

"When I found Tifa in the church, I thought she was dead," his voice cracked and he let tears escape from behind his eyelids, "I had brought her to the church-I was trying to protect her and-" he paused, balling his fists at his sides and failing to suppress the paramount of emotions flooding out of him.

"I thought I had killed her," Cloud exhaled unsteadily and wiped the tears from his face roughly away, the vision of Tifa's lifeless body lying in the flowers penetrating his mind.

"I-I think I know what you mean," he uttered, realization which had slowly ebbing into him, finally hitting him at full force. His two friends looked at him, a little sadly, but hopefully. He took them in, imprinting their image in his mind and drew strength from their presence as he contemplated his thoughts, "No matter what's happened in the past, I can find happiness-as long as I start living for now and for the future. My weaknesses, my failures-_they _should stay in the past, but_ I _shouldn't."

"There is great futility in denying yourself happiness-not only in means of yourself, but almost especially to those around you," Zack offered, which surprised his two companions. Noticing their visible looks of surprise, he grinned sheepishly.

"You don't spend time with Angeal and _not _pick up some sort of universal wisdom," he explained without insult at their initial shock, "At any rate, I have always thought it to be true." Aeris beamed at her love and he turned adoring eyes on her in return while Cloud struggled somewhere between pride in his best friend and awkwardness at the couple's show of affections.

"I never believed I deserved Tifa. She was always too good, too kind, too strong-and she's still too good, too kind and too strong," Cloud continued after allowing the two before him to soak each other up, "I was always so focused on what I thought was best for her; I never thought to consider what was best for the_ both of us_. I'm a better man when I'm with Tifa and I should have known that just standing by her, as she has done for me, would make her happy. And so if I'm to stop living in the past, the best place to begin is to start making it up to her. Because she's the best part of my past, my present-and she's my future. "

"And she's what you want," Aeris spoke up finally, "Don't deny your wants anymore," She gave Cloud the most brilliant, heartfelt smile he had ever seen grace her beautiful features and then Zack was grinning at him too; he saw so much pride in his eyes it made Cloud feel rather giddy as his heart swelled in his chest.

"You know, Cloud," Zack began, a cheeky smile playing on his lips, "I don't think I've ever heard you speak so much before," and his face split into a wicked grin as Aeris pushed him playfully and Cloud chuckled in spite of himself.

"And, just for the record-I do, I always have, and I _always will_."

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Nyawwwww. I love affectionate Cloud. And wise Zack. So, tell me-is it doing it for you? Heehee.

Reviews would be much appreciated!


	4. Live Love

Hi! It's been ages. My long hiatus away from is hopefully over for now. I came across this chapter on my laptop and I thought to myself, 'I really should publish something!' Hopefully it will motivate me to carry on with 'It's Not Fair' if anyone's still reading that one! Haha. In the meantime, enjoy this short, but sweet, chapter!

**I own nothing.**

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Cloud's body was feeling less and less accustomed to the space-whatever, it really was-he was standing in with his deceased friends. He wondered if it were simply his imagination that Aeris and Zack seemed to get a little blurry around the edges, a little brighter or if they might really dissolve into light at any time.

"Can you feel it Cloudy?" Zack asked, as if he could read his mind. Cloud simply nodded.

"You have to go back sooner or later," Aeris said softly, stepping forward and running a hand up his arm as if to encourage him. He shook his head.

"No, I know. I'm going back. I'm going to live."

"For yourself," Zack nodded towards him and gave Cloud a meaningful look, as if to say, '_And not for us, or the past-not anymore.'_

"Yeah," Cloud smiled. And it really felt _good._

Zack scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "I've never been good at goodbyes."

"You are good at dramatic exits," Cloud said.

"Did you just make a joke, Cloud?" Zack jumped forward and threw his arms around him, wrapping Cloud up in a headlock, "I don't believe it, Spike made a funny!"

"And one of rather poor taste," Aeris added, fixing a serious look on her face, and resisting the urge to giggle.

Cloud suddenly looked horrified, his eyes becoming wide and he moved to open his mouth to speak.

"No, no! I meant-"

"Don't you dare say sorry, man," Zack gave him a noogie and flung his own head back with laughter.

"I just meant-"

"If you're referring to that time in Junon-"

"What happened in Junon?" Aeris wanted to know.

"He took me and a couple other infantry out for dinner. He thought it would be funny to start a food fight, and we were kicked out. Of course, Zack had to make an exit-he left singing and dancing out the doors."

"And it was a tradition I kept all that time," Zack nodded proudly.

Cloud nodded back, "We were kicked out of 23 eateries over 6 months."

"Good times."

A pleasant silence settled over the three friends again. Cloud sighed, "It's time, isn't it?"

Zack and Aeris nodded simultaneously.

"Live."

_"Love."_

"Goodnight." And as Cloud stepped towards his two friends, in a movement to possibly hold them one more time, it was as though the ground was swept out from beneath him and he was suddenly looking up into white nothingness. He couldn't feel their warmth, their presence, and he knew that they were gone. He shut his eyes against the now blinding white light but as soon as the harsh light seemed to be penetrating his eyelids, everything went dark.

His nostrils were filled with a familiar aroma – of floral scents and the decadent, musky smell of a dilapidated church.

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Please R&R! xoxo.


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